


A Puzzle Hershel Layton Can't Solve

by orphan_account



Category: Layton Kyouju Series | Professor Layton Series
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-14
Updated: 2019-06-14
Packaged: 2020-05-07 19:02:41
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,648
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19215595
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: The puzzle aficionado, Randall Ascot, was always trying to make his friend just as excited as he was about puzzles. But Hershel just wasn't interested. And when Randall plummeted into a deep chasm, he didn't want anything more to do with puzzles. Until he found one stashed away in his belongings that had moved with him to London, away from all the memories that Stansbury gave him. This time though, Hershel felt he ought to solve that puzzle. It would be an insult to Randall's memory not to.





	A Puzzle Hershel Layton Can't Solve

**Author's Note:**

> The title is taken from a remix of a Professor Layton track on Soundcloud. Listen to it if you want: https://soundcloud.com/mewmore/layton
> 
> Also, the puzzle I used for the hints was “Get the Ball Out! 1” from Curious Village because I’m not good at making up hints to an imaginary puzzle. I changed the wording a bit though.

Hershel had been staring at this puzzle for what seemed like days. It was a slide puzzle that had been sitting in his drawer ever since he moved into his dorm at Gressenheller. Randall had put it into his desk drawer in Stansbury and said he “should solve it sometime”. Hershel, of course, had ignored his friend’s attempt to push puzzle solving onto him and he had soon forgotten about it. 

He was unpacking in his dorm room, his and Clark’s things scattered everywhere, when he came across the puzzle.

He felt a wave of sadness crash onto him but he couldn’t cry in front of his friend.

“What have you got there, Hershel?” Clark had noticed him staring as he was sorting out his shirts.

“Oh, nothing,” Hershel mumbled. “Just a puzzle a friend gave me.”

“I didn’t think you were much of a puzzle solver.”

Hershel laughed sadly. “Me neither.”

He had put it away in a drawer and vowed to forget about it. It caused him too much pain to think about that puzzle and Randall. He didn’t want to go through that again.

But, sure enough, curiosity got the better of him and one autumn day, he got the puzzle out of his drawer. He had studying to do but he couldn’t stop thinking of Randall that day and the slide puzzle he had gifted to him. It felt disrespectful to his memory not to solve it.

Clark came into the room a few hours after they had unpacked and saw Hershel trying to solve the puzzle and he had emitted noises of frustration, not knowing his roommate could hear him. Hershel cursed and Clark couldn’t help himself. He gasped loudly and Hershel almost jumped out of his skin.

“Clark! I didn’t hear you come in.”

Clark chuckled. “Is that the puzzle you can’t solve?”

“Yes. I can’t do it. It is very frustrating.”

Clark picked it up and examined it. It wasn’t very big but Clark had to hold it in both hands. “So you have to get this ball to the other side by moving the other blocks?”

“Yes. I’ve been trying to solve it for hours.”

Clark turned to his friend. “Don’t you have an exam next week?”

Hershel hung his head low. “Yes. But a friend gave me that puzzle and I-” He choked up, tears welling up in his eyes. He blinked them away and continued. “I really want to solve it for him.”

“Right.” Clark knew better than to ask who this was for. He had noticed Hershel getting upset. “Do you need any assistance?”

“I think so.” He felt foolish to admit this but he knew he wouldn’t get it solved otherwise.

“Alright. Let’s see…”

He spent a few minutes looking at the blocks and trying to move them in such a way that there would be a pathway for the ball to move out. But there was nothing.

He sighed. “Sorry, Hershel. It appears to be unsolvable.”

Hershel shook his head. “Randall always said no puzzle was without an answer.” He surprised himself by saying his name for the first time in years.

Clark didn’t notice this time, however. “Alright. We just need to keep trying then.”

He took the puzzle away to the armchair and when he lifted it up, Hershel noticed that there was a piece of paper stuck to the back.

“Wait, there’s some paper here.” Hershel got up and carefully took the paper from the wooden base. He turned the paper over and it brought a smile to his face as he read it:

_ Hersh, do you want a hint? I’m sure you can solve it but I made this just in case. _

The piece of paper was folded several times so Hershel unfolded it all the way out and noticed that there were three hints to be used. He quickly covered up the last two before he could read them. He wanted to do this properly.

_ You found a hint coin!  _ was at the top of the page next to a little drawing of a coin with the letter R on it. Hershel chuckled and continued to read.

_ Hint 1: Try not to repeat your moves as you won’t get anywhere! Try to think ahead of your moves and you should solve the puzzle in no time. _

He rolled his eyes. That hint was useless! Trust Randall to make things difficult for him. He unfolded the page once more to see the second hint.

_ You found another hint coin! Well done, Hersh! _

_ Hint 2: Alright, I’ll actually help you this time. Slide the blue rectangle up to the top right and slide the two purple squares so they sit below the blue block. Then you can move the yellow square to the right. I won’t tell you any more. I don’t want to make it too easy. Now get going! _

Hershel couldn’t help but smile. It was as if Randall was in the room with him, cheering him on. He wished he had been more excited about solving puzzles now, for Randall’s sake. He had found them fun once he had solved them but not any other time. Maybe they could have become closer if Hershel had just sucked up his pride and indulged in a puzzle or two from him.

He had to forget about that now though and put Clark out of his misery.

“There are some hints here from Randall. He must have known I wouldn’t be able to solve it on my own,” Hershel chuckled.

“This is quite difficult. I’m glad Randall placed some doubt in you otherwise we would have never got those hints.”

They both laughed. Hershel knew he didn’t really mean that. He relayed the one useful hint to Clark and he groaned since he had already done that move. It was just the moves after that where he messed up.

“Do you want the last hint?” Hershel asked.

“No! I can do this!”

“Alright.” 

Hershel looked at the handwriting of his best friend for the last time and tucked it neatly away in his drawer. This was one of the only things he had left of Randall’s. His father didn’t particularly get along well with him or Angela so neither of them could go through his belongings for anything sentimental. At least Angela still had her pendant.

Hershel shook himself out of that memory once more. He didn’t want to think of Angela either. Not after she had blamed him for Randall’s death.

He made himself get up off of his chair and try and help Clark. With both of them doing it, it didn’t take long before the puzzle was almost complete.

There was a wide grin on his face as Clark turned to Hershel. “Would you like to do the honours?”

“Certainly.”

He slid the ball into place in the bottom square and the two of them cheered. They were relieved that they had solved it.

“Every puzzle has an answer,” Hershel mumbled to himself. Randall always used to say that to him. It felt right to say it now.

“That’s the power of teamwork!” Clark said happily, not hearing Hershel’s mutterings. “I’m assuming you want this back.”

“Yes.”

Hershel made sure to place it neatly back where it came from. He never wanted to lose it. He would solve it several times over the years. It helped him distract himself in the middle of the night when the nightmares became too vivid. It became like a stuffed toy was to a child. 

He still carried it when he met Luke, Emmy, and later Flora and travelled around the world, solving mysteries.

He carried it in Monte d’Or when they encountered the Masked Gentleman and discovered his true identity. It sat in the drawer next to his bedside in their hotel room. He solved it a couple of times just for old time’s sake and he gave it to Luke and Emmy to solve too. To his delight, they didn’t have trouble solving it at all and didn’t even ask for one hint. Hershel would have gladly given them hints though; he had memorised the paper off by heart.

Hershel later told Randall about it when they met again as adults after the whole affair.

“Oh, Hersh? You really kept that all these years?”

“Of course,” Hershel grinned, moving to his desk and finding the puzzle. It wasn’t as easy as it used to be as his desk was untidy now. But he found it soon enough. He had a place for everything, even if it wasn’t as neat as he would’ve liked.

“God, Hershel. I really thought you were joking.”

“I would never do such a thing, Randall.”

Randall held it and looked at it from every angle. “I remember writing those hints for you too.”

“I have those also,” Hershel admitted, rather embarrassed.

“Wow, you really did miss me.”

He nodded.

“How many times have you solved this puzzle now?”

Hershel chuckled. “I have lost count, I’m afraid.”

“Wow…” Randall was truly speechless. “I don’t know what to say. I never thought a stupid little puzzle like this would mean so much to you.”

Hershel smiled. “Well, you were the reason I began to study archaeology at university. I was thinking of you a lot during those times and that puzzle helped me.”

Randall didn’t need to ask. He couldn’t imagine how hard it must have been for Hershel, Angela, and Henry to believe that he was dead for so long. “I’m glad, Hershel.”

“I’m glad too, Randall. I’m glad you’re back and here with us… with me.”

“Aw, Hersh. Stop it, you’re making me blush.” And sure enough, Hershel could see red creeping up Randall’s neck. 

He chuckled. “I apologise but it is the truth. We all missed you so much.”

Randall smiled. “And I missed you too.”


End file.
